


Marked

by trashabellanar



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age II
Genre: Established Relationship, Fluff, Lyrium Brands, M/M, Mild Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-01
Updated: 2016-08-01
Packaged: 2018-07-28 14:44:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 946
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7645051
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/trashabellanar/pseuds/trashabellanar
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Fenris's lyrium brands are hurting him, so Hawke decides to find a non-magical way to help soothe the pain.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Marked

**Author's Note:**

> This is a super old oneshot I originally posted to my tumblr (trashabellanar.tumblr.com) ages ago! I just finally got around to making an account here and decided to upload some of my old stuff.

Something is moving in the dark next to Garrett. His eyes flutter open as his mind spins, trying to identify the source of the sound, but his sleep-clouded mind is working slowly.

A hard object hits the center of his back and he cries aloud, spinning to see what it was, and finds Fenris writhing in what appears to be a horrible nightmare. His hands are clenched in tight fists— so that’s what had hit him.

_You’re not supposed to wake people from nightmares, right? Or no, that’s sleepwalking. Fuck it_ , Garret thinks, and reaches over to brush his fingers over Fenris’s shoulder. The lyrium markings glow faintly in the dark, but they fade a little bit as Fenris wakes up with a startled grunt.

“What? I… Garrett?” he grumbles, squinting at him in the dark.

Garrett reaches forwards and places his hand on Fenris’s cheek; he’s still shaking. “You were having a nightmare,” he explains.

Fenris looks down and opens his mouth hesitantly, before remaining silent and shaking his head.

Garrett’s eyebrows furrow. “Then what was that? Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” Fenris replies, still not meeting Garrett’s eyes. After a pause, he continues, “It’s the lyrium markings. They hurt. Sometimes. A freezing kind of feeling, like ice under my skin. But it’s not—”

“How can I help?”

“Don’t worry about—”

“Too late. Hold still,” Garrett says softly, eliciting a nervous look from Fenris.

A warm hand— much warmer than a normal human hand— presses flat against the markings on the elf’s stomach. Fenris sighs and moves into the touch, closing his eyes. “What are you—“

But then he jerks away, hopping right out of bed and backing away. “You’re using magic on me.”

“I’m sorry. I thought it would help,” Garrett replies, propping himself on his elbows. “I— I wasn’t thinking.”

“No, no, it’s not your fault,” Fenris sighs. He’s shaking less now, but he’s still a bit unsteady on his feet and there’s an unfocused expression on his face that lets Garrett know that the pain hasn’t gone away yet. “I… I’m sorry about all this.”

Garrett crawls out of bed and approaches Fenris slowly. “You have nothing to apologize for. Here, I have an idea. No magic involved. Sit down here.” He gestures to the edge of the bed closest to the fire, then exits the room.

Fenris perches on the mattress, trying to ignore the searing pain under his skin, driving itself into his flesh like a thousand frozen needles. He’s used to it by now, but some nights it’s worse than others, and this is one of the worst he’s had in a while. If he were alone tonight, he’d probably be screaming and crying and clawing at his skin, but he can’t do that in front of Garrett. He can’t let him know how bad it really is. He can’t lay that kind of burden on someone like Garrett Hawke, who would without a doubt throw his own safety and caution to the wind to help ease the pain in any way possible. No, this is something Fenris has dealt with for as long as he can remember, quite literally, and it’s something he can keep dealing with.

Fenris doesn’t realize there are tears streaking his cheeks until Garrett re-enters the bedroom with a pot of water and a stack of soft-looking cloths draped over one forearm.

“Fenris!” he exclaims, placing the items on the hearth and sitting next to the elf on the bed, gently grabbing one luminescent hand. “Is it that bad, love?”

Fenris looks up at Garrett with unfocused, reddened eyes and he’s pretty sure the mage doesn’t even realize what he just said. _Love_. That’s not a word Fenris is used to. It bounces around in his head until the inside of his skull feels like it’s going to burst. But in a good way— for a brief moment he can almost forget the freezing burn of the lyrium.

Fenris leans forward and kisses him, softly and slowly. “I’ll be fine,” he murmurs when he pulls away, and for the first time in a very long time, he thinks he might actually believe it.

Garrett kisses his forehead and stands up, moving towards the hearth. He hangs the pot of water from the hook above the low flames and places one of the cloths in it. After a few moments, he reaches into the water to retrieve it.

“Careful,” Fenris says. “You’ll burn yourself.”

“I’m a mage, Fenris. I throw fireballs on a daily basis. I’ll be fine,” he teases as he wrings out the towel and sits behind Fenris on the bed. He presses the warm cloth to the elf’s skin and gently massages it over his back. “Is this okay?”

Fenris nods silently and presses backwards. The warmth of the damp cloth and Garrett’s hands do wonders to alleviate both the pain of the lyrium and the soreness of his tired muscles. He lets himself relax and simply be taken care of, something that’s never really happened to him before.

When he’s done, Garrett presses a kiss to the back of Fenris’s neck. “Was that okay?”

“It was lovely,” Fenris said, scooting backwards and resting his head under Garrett’s scratchy, bearded chin.

Garrett wraps his arms loosely around Fenris and kisses the top of his head. “Next time you’re hurting, just tell me, okay? I’ll do anything I can to help. I don’t want you to have to suffer in silence ever again.”

Fenris feels himself choking up a bit again, but it’s for a completely different reason this time. And all he can think about his how warm he feels right now.


End file.
